Double conveyer distributor



Nov. 1, 1932. J. J. WALLACE 1,885,656

DOUBLE CONVEYER DISTRIBUTOR Filed April 16. 1931 3 Sheets-Sheet l Jeffrey J Wa'llac Nov; 1, 1932. J. J. WALLACE 1,385,656

DOUBLE CONVEYER DISTRIBUTOR Filed April 16. 1931 s Sheets-Sheet 2 Nov. 1, 1932. J. J. WALLACE DOUBLE CONVEYER DISTRIBUTOR :5 sheets-sheet 3 Filed April 16; 1931 Patented Nov. l, 1932 e v V i N D AS Her other:

JEFFREY J, WALLACE, or AMITE, LOUISIANA, ASSIG-NOR mo GULIJETT em COMPANY, or AMITE, LOUISIANA v DOUBLE coNvEYER DISTRIBUTOR Application filed April 16, 1931.7 Serial 530,655. g

This invention relates to double-screw apparent as the detailed descriptionthereof conveyers adapted to be used instead of the proceeds. endless belt spiked conveyers in common use In the-drawings: r in distributors for cotton ginning systems. v Figure I 's a front elevation of the dis- The main object of the present invention is tributingsystem embodying the present in 5i. 'to provide a distributor system in which the vention; 1 a v conveyer boxes are built up in sections, the Figure 2 is a perspectiveview of one side number of which is determined by the numof the conveyer box of the saidsystem, part ber of gins to be served, and in' which the thereof being-broken away to show details sides of the sections are shipped so that they of Construction; 1

can be readily nested for storage and ship-' vFigure 3 is a r ken front elevation ping. 1 one of the sectionsofthe distributor sys- Another object of'th-e invention is to proem, having a side removed and parts there'- id a conveyai hi h th id f the of being shown in section to illustrate details each other by operationin' common bending line 44 of Figure 3; machines. 7 Figure 5 is a fragmentary front 'elevation A further object of the invention resides in 9 h left hehd end Ofthe Section shown themethod of manufacturing the conveyer 111 F g "j boxes in sections ofstandard length to'cor- Flgure 6 i a rt alt ansverse section 0 1' respond to the standard lengths of screwf the h F1gure3; conveyers as manufactured by regular cong 7 1S -P P V e o a hanger. veyer manufacturers for this purpose. bracket Heed pp the shafts of h Still another object ofthe invention re- Y y screwsuforming a P Of this inven? sides in making'the filler pieces, designed U011}? l to form the bottom of the conveyer bo b v Figure 8 1s a vertica1section taken on the tween discharge hoppers, of different lengths 11118 8 8 0f Flgure the a e being ell-- H to correspond to the center-to-cente'r dis f i I I 'tances between hoppers in ginning outfits Flgure a P P Q VleW Of One Of d b Variousmanufacturerg the filler pleces forming the bottom of the Another object of the inventionresidesin conveyer box between the dlschalge'hoppers the peculiar designof screw-hanger brackets thelleofi V which are not only used to journal the various Flgure 10 1S a fragmentary slde elevatlon screw sections in the conveyer boxes but are of anadjUStabIG discharge hopper connected to a cotton in 7 also used to secure the upper edges of the sides g v igure 11 1s a fra mentar end elevation 3 theseVbOXes-m: properly Spaced apartof a linkage for cont olling the operation of X- f the valve in the discharge hopper, and

4P h O 3 l th lnventlon: 851C163. Figure 12 is a verticalsection' througha S5 111 h s gp f the dlscharge pp p c discharge hopper forming part ofthe present along the d stributor box and constructed so i ti that the Ie 0f dl e g eeeh pp :As shown in F igure-l-of the drawings, the may be VZIIIQCl'ElS ClGSlIQd; w system comprises a separator 1 ofany well having plang faces arranged at an angle to- Figure 4: is it vertical section taken On the boxes therefor are'formed from sheet metal, f' I1StI'11CtiOn; 6

45 Other objects of the invention will become known construction and suitably connected I to one end of a conveyer distributor adapted to feed cotton from the separator and through any desired number of hoppers to a corresponding number of gin feeders. The distributor conveyer shown in the drawings is made up in three sections S, S1, S2 designed to feed cotton to the hoppers H, H1 and H2. IVhile there are only three sections shown in the drawings it must be understood that the system may comprise any desired number of sections'which correspond in number to the number of gins to be fed.

In this system each of the sectionsis the same in length as every other section; that is, thes'ections are of a standard length. The

length of each section corresponds to a standard length of screw convcyers as manufactured by the various makers thereof. In the present invention each section of the convey-- er box comprises side walls 2 and 3 "(see Figure 6) 'made of sheet metal bent to the desired shape in a common bendinglnachine. The opposite side walls 2 and 3am identical in cross .section so thatit is'only necessary to bend all the side walls in the same shape.

Each of the side walls of the several sections is shaped from a single sheet of material to form a central vertical part 4. The sheet is then bent at obtuse angles to form the inclined parts and 6. The innerend of the part 5 is bent vertically upward to form a part 7 (see Figure 6),'which in turn is bent to form the horizontal flange 8. A bar 9 of angle iron is seated in the corner formed by the part 7 and the flange 8, and is suitablyriveted or otherwise secured in thisposition.

The lower inclined part 6 of the side wall connects with a horizontal part 10 which is turned down at its inner edge to form a vertical part 11; and this part 11 is turned out wardly to form the part 12, which is then upturned to form a stiffening flange 13. In the corner formed betwen the parts 10 and 11 there is suitably secured a bar of angle iron 14. I I

It will be apparent from the description so far that the side walls. of each section are formed from sheets of.,1naterial, each of which is bent to form a plurality of rela tively inclined plane faces, the outer faces being bent to form stiffening flanges adapted to receive angle irons for bracing the walls lengthwise and for securing the sides tosuitable members forming the top and bottom of the distributor box.

The opposite ends of the side walls of each section are connected to each other by filler members 15 (see Figure 9); Each of these filler membersv is made as a hollow casting having a vertical end wall 16 (seeFigure 3) connected to side walls 17 and 18, having their opposite ends connected to each other by the end wall 19. The walls 17 and 18 have their upper edges connected: to upwardly inclined walls 20 and 21 respectively, and these walls 20 and 21 have their inner edges connected to the upwardly sloping walls 22 and 23. which meet in a ridge 24. The ridge 24 is intended to be substantially horizontal when in position as part of the conveyer box, and meets a sloping wall 25 which extends upwardly from the upper edge of the Wall 19 somewhat similarly to the sloping hip of a hip-roof.

, Each of the walls 17 and 18 is provided with any desired number of apertures 26 adapted to receive bolts or rivets for securing the member 15 to the angle irons 14 which form stiffening bars for the lower ends of the side walls of each section.- The vertical end wall 16 is provided with suitable bolt holes 27 adapted to receive bolts or rivets 'for securing the end of one filler member 15 to. the similar end of a filler member'in the adjacent section of the con veyer box. I V

The downwardly sloping walls 25 are to be positioned toward the, inner part of each section so as to form hopper walls for conduct-' ing cotton to a hopper immediately below each section. The walls 19 of each member 15 are provided with apertures 28 adapted to receive bolts or rivets for securing the upper end walls of the hoppers to said-iillingmembers 15 and in position to receive cotton to be discharged from the distributor into the cotton gins.

a flange 31 and 32extending flush with the ends of the sidewall and perpendicular to the faces thereof, the said flanges being provided with suitable apertures 33' and 34 adapted to receive bolts by which the flanges of the adjacent sections are secured to each other in forming a conveyer box for a battery of gins. V I V V As will be apparent from inspection of Figure 2 of the drawings the castings 29 and are made in-pairs, and are shaped to conform to the shape of the side walls, and thereby operate not only tosecure the ends of the side walls of the. several sections to each other but also serve to stiffen the walls transversely. V

The left hand end of the section S has a closure plate 35 bolted to the flanges of the sidewalls of the said section,'and this plate is provided with bearings for the drive shafts of the conveyer screws 36 and 37 which are mounted in'the conveyer box to rotate in opposite directions as shown in Figure 4 of driven by any suitable driving mechanism.

The shafts 38 and 39 have the gears 4:3 and lsecuredthereto and in mesh with each other to bedriven in opposite directions, and thereby drive the conveyer screws .36 and 37 in opposite directions" looking down in the conveyer box, as seen in Figure 6 ofthe drawings. While the conveyer screws might be designed to rotate in directions-opposite to that shown in the drawings, it is preferred that they do rotate as they are shown inthis case, because it is essential'that the cottonbe carried mainly on top of the conveyer screws in order to secure the greatest efiiciency in operation. 7 Q

It is of course obvious that the'closure plate '35 will bebolted to the perpendicu-- lar wall 16 of the filler member 15 which secures the bottom end of the opposite side Walls in properly spaced relation to each other. This construction forms a very rigid connection between the opposite wall of the section S at thedriving end of the conveyer screws. 7 T

The screws 36 and 37 have one end of each suitably secured to their respective driving shafts 38 and 39. The other ends of the screws 36 and are suitably secured to short stub shafts (only one of which appears in the drawings) and these shafts are journaled in bearings 46 and 17 formed in the lower ends of arms 48 and 19 respectively which depend-from a cross bar 50.

, The cross bar 50 is provided at its opposite ends with flanges 51 and 52 which are apertured to receive bolts 53 and 54 for securing the cross bar to outturned flanges at the upper end of the castings at the ends of the opposite side walls. 7

The cross bar 50 not only supports the bearing arms 49 and 48 for the con'veyer supporting shafts 45 but" also serve to secure the upper ends of the sidewalls inproperly spaced relation. A filler member 15 is" bolted to the lower flanges of the oppositesidewalls and to'the; castings at the ends thereof as indicated clearl inFi 'ures-3' a t:

and 6 of the drawings.

The number of sections of the convey-er box will vary with the number of gins to be supplied,-but each section following the first is substantially the same as every other section and is provided with the flanged castings by means of which each section is de tech-ably connected to the adjacent sectionor sections.

Each filler member 15 has a flange turned inwardly from the lower edge of the Wall .19, and this flange 55 is provided with suit able apertures by means of which the upper flanged. edges 56 and 57 of the hoppers H, H1, etc. are'secured tothe'distributor conveyer box. v

Each hopper used with this invention comprises a casing 58 having the flanges 56 57 formed on the upper edges thereof. "The casing 58 is substantially rectangular in cross section and has the lower part 59 thereoflaterally extended to provide a valve chamber 60. Shafts. 61 and 62 are journaledin said chamber and are provided with valve plates 63 and 64L respectively. These plates are adapted to be swung from the closing posiwithout being-in any way'obstructe'd- By this construction the cotton'is delivered on to thecenter of the feeder drum therebyfallowing a great spread of the cotton as it is carried over the screen back of the feeder and thus permits better-cleaning and provides little opportunity for choking the feeder. H 1

.The shafts 61 and. 62; extend through one end of the hopper. casing. The shaft 61 has a crank arm 65 secured thereto by a set screw 66. The shaft 62 has a crank arm 67 secured thereto by a set screw 68'; and the freeends of: the crank arins65 and 67 are pivotally connected to the oppositeends of a link An'operating lever 70isalso secured to the shaft 62. and serves to rotate'the 1 shaft 62 in order to transmit the rotation thereof through the crank arm 65 and 67 and intermediate link 69to the shaft 61. The

63 and-6a at various. degrees in order to regulate the flow of cotton through the hope pers to the feeder drums. The control of this valve mechanism is effected by a handle 71' which has one end pivotally connected to the free end ofthe lever 70, and has-its other end formed as a hand grip 72adapted to be engaged with any of-thehoops 73, 74, 75, and 76. These hoops are located at varisecured to the casing of the gins 78.

It should be noted here that the Valve plates 63 and 64 are sufficiently heavy to overbal ancethe operating linkage connected to the ICD . ous distances apart on a'plate 77 suitably shafts 61 and 62 and alsothe handle 71'connected to sai d linkage; 1 This means that when the-hand grip .7 2 is disengaged from all-of the hoops 73, 7 i, 7 5 .and 76, the valves remain in the'open position indicated by dotted lines in Figure 12, and the linkage assumes the positionindicatedby dotted lines inFigure 10.

By variously adjusting the control valves of the hoppers leadingto a battery of gins, the density of the bed of cotton in the space. above the feeder rollers is varied and the flow of cotton from the feeder is varied accordingly. This aids materially in having all the gins complete the ginning of a certain bale of cotton more evenly, and prevents the necessity of waiting until the first gin has finishedand,so on down the line.

It will also be apparent that the various valve mechanisms of the hoppers leading to a battery of gins can be relatively regulated so that the cotton feeds at the same rate through all the feeders, and so that overflow may be practically eliminated. It is obvious that the greatest density of'the cottonin the conveyer mechanism exists above 7 the first hopper, and-that this density decreases as the cotton is-conveyedtowardthe overflow end of the system; If the valves be opened wider as they approach the overflow, end itis evident that they maybe positioned so that the rate of flow through the various hoppers is substantially the same.

It will also be apparentthat by adjusting the openings of the several hopper valves 5; in accordance with the speedof rotation of the conveyerscrews, the overflow can be prac- :tically eliminated,rsince the valves can be opened sufliciently to take care of all the cotton passing through the conveyer box.

a This practical elimination of the overflow has a decided advantage over the prior system, because it provides less cotton to be handled through the cleaning equipment and avoids the danger'of machining the cotton, which causes the roping of the cotton and is injurious to the staple.

Nhile I have shown the system as embodied in specific apparatus, it must be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the particular form of the apparatus shown, nor in any other way except as rehereto.

What I claim is: v

1. A cotton distributor comprising a trough having the sides thereof bent from sheet metal to form a plurality of plane faces quired by the scope of the claims appended arranged at an angle to each other, spaced 7 apart filler members detachably connecting 1 the opposite sides to each other, a bearing plate'connected to one of said filler pieces and to the adjacent ends of'a pair of sides, a cross barrconnecting the upper edges of the other ends of said sides, a pair of arms depending from said cross bar and having j ournal bearings formed in the ends thereof, a

pair of screw conveyers journaled in said bearing plate and bearings, and means for rotating said screw conveyers in opposite di rections. V h

2. A cotton distributor comprising a trough having the opposite sides thereof bent from sheet metal to form a-plurality of plane faces arranged at an. angle to each other, spaced apart filler members detachablyv connecting the ends of the opposite sides to each trough having a bearing plate closingone end thereof, a cross bar secured to the opposite depending therefrom, a pair of screw conveyers journaled in said bearing plate and in the ends'of said arms, a pair of filler pieces end of said trough and having a pair of arms spaced apart to form the'bottom of said trough and the entrance to a hopper, a hopper secured to said filler pieces, means for rotat mg said conveyers in ODPOSltQClllBCtlODS, and

means in said hopper for varying the rate of flow of cotton th'erethrough.

4. A cotton conveying system vfor distributing cotton to a battery of gins, comprising a conveyer box'built up of sections detachably connected to each other and ex tending over said gins, each gin having a separate section for controlling the feed of cotton thereto, each section including a pair of sides bent from sheet metal to form a plurality of plane faces arranged at an angle to each other, a casting suitably secured to the opposite ends of each side, a closure plate de tachably connected to the castings at the. ad- 1 jacent ends of one pair of sides, a cross bar detachably connectedto the castings at the other endsof said pair of sides and having bearing arms depending therefrom,spaced apart filler members secured to thelower edges of said sides at the opposite endsthereof, and a pair of screw conveyers journaled in sald closure plate and in the lower ends of said bearing arms. p Y Y 5. A cotton conveying system for distribut ing cotton to a battery of gins, comprising a conveyer box built up of sections detachably connected to each other and extending over said glns, each gln having a separate section for controlllng the feed of cotton thereto, each section including a pair of sides bent from sheet metal to form a plurality of plane faces arranged at an angle to each other, and hav ing their top andbottom edges'provided with angle bars, spaced apart filler members secured to the, angle bars at the lo-weredges of said pair of sides, a cover plate connecting the angle bars at the upper edges of said pair of sides and forming the top of said box, castings having flanges extending perpendicular to the faces to opposite ends thereof, a closure plate secured to the castings at one end of said pair of sides, a bearing member secured to the castings at the other end of said pair of sides, and a pair of spiral screw eonveyers journaled in said plate and bearing member.

In testimony whereof I hereby afiix my signature.

JEFFREY J. WALLACE.

pf said sides and suitably secured 

